Too many refugees: Germany closes its borders. Crosetto attacks Scholz: “Consistent and clever”

A new page is opening in the dispute between Italy and Germany over immigrants. This time the attack was launched by Defense Minister Guido Crosetto, who sarcastically commented on his social channels that German Chancellor Olaf Scholz wanted to introduce “additional security measures at Austria’s borders” to deal with the large number of refugees. “It has reached an agreement with Switzerland and the Czech Republic on joint controls on their side”. Crosetto’s tweet is sarcastic. “We are trying to prevent migration in one part of Europe and make it easier to reach another. Consistently and skillfully,” he writes on X (formerly Twitter).

Scholz stated that “the number of refugees trying to come to Germany is currently very high” and added, “For this reason, we have long supported the protection of Europe’s external borders.” Recently, Berlin announced that it would introduce new border controls with Poland and the Czech Republic, and even earlier, in the hot days of the Lampedusa emergency, it announced that it was stopping the admission program for immigrants from Italy. accuses our country of not complying with the Dublin regulation.

Asylum requests increased by 78 percent in Germany

Germany has seen a 78% increase in asylum requests in the first seven months of 2023, according to official data. The number of illegal border crossings recorded in the country in August reached 14,701, an increase of 66% compared to the same period of the previous year. to police data. Berlin also hosted nearly 1 million Ukrainian refugees last year; These figures are not included in asylum application figures. The decision to partially suspend Schengen has already been forwarded to the European Commission.

Why are Rome and Berlin arguing over immigrants?

When it comes to the clashes between Rome and Berlin, the Italian government has repeatedly accused Germany of financing NGOs operating offshore, leaving Italy alone in providing for these NGOs. According to Meloni (we read in the Prime Minister’s letter to Scholz) “it is widely known that the presence of NGO boats at sea has a direct effect of increasing the departures of precarious boats, which not only brings more burdens, but also creates new tragedies at sea It also increases the risk.”

The conflict escalated further after Germany, at the EU Home Affairs Council meeting aimed at rewriting the reception system in crisis situations, presented an amendment that somehow legitimized the activities of non-state actors – thus including NGOs – without regulating the relevant mode. operandi. A change that infuriated the Italian government. And so the deal was put on hold. So the conflict between Rome and Berlin shows no signs of abating.

The reform of the EU Pact on Migrants and the Memorandum of Understanding with Tunisia will also be discussed at the plenary meeting with the Commission and the EU Council in Strasbourg on Wednesday. And the debate explains Alfonso Bianchi: EuropeTodayIt promises to get even more heated, given the majority of Parliament’s opposition to the deal with Tunisia and the MPs’ demand for a joint rescue mission in the Mediterranean (which the States do not like).

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Source: Today IT

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